Kentwood talk show hosts address racial tensions on morning radio program

KENTWOOD -- At 10:05 a.m. on a Monday morning, the Michael Jackson song "Black or White" pumps through a Kentwood radio studio.

Time for Skot Welch and Rick Wilson to rock.

"Welcome, folks!" Welch pipes into his microphone. "This is 'Radio in Black and White,' the most integrated hour of the week."

At the top of their weekly radio show about race, the pair go at it like the old friends they are -- with a good dollop of morning DJ banter thrown in.

"The mayor showed up on our fan page! I was amazed!" chimes in Wilson with the smooth charm of a 20-year broadcast pro.

Rick Wilson

"What if the PC people show up?" quips Welch. "We drive them crazy," Wilson retorts.

These two aren't worried about political correctness -- in fact they banish it from their studio.

Their two-hour show on WPRR-AM (1680) is all about pushing people out of their comfort zones into a meaningful discussion about race relations.

That includes the current controversy over Henry Louis Gates Jr., the black Harvard scholar arrested by a white police officer after breaking into his own home. Welch and Wilson discussed the incident on this week's show, which is re-broadcast today from 9 to 11 a.m.

Skot Welch

"We desperately want it to be a teachable moment," Wilson says. "Unfortunately, there's a lot of white denial going on."

If you don't think these guys want to shake up white-bread West Michigan, think again. They bring a passion for healing racism rooted in faith and friendship.

They met about 10 years ago at Grand Rapids First, the Wyoming Assembly of God congregation that has made deliberate efforts to integrate. Welch was giving a diversity seminar and asking people if they'd had coffee with someone different from them, or gone on vacation with them.

In his head, Wilson was answering "no" every time. A week later, he invited Welch to dinner.
"I was completely comfortable in the segregation I grew up in," admits Wilson, a Detroit native.

"The only people of color I knew were the maids who cleaned our houses. (Welch) lit up a whole new world for me."

In this new world, Wilson, a self-described "ignorant white Irish guy," saw things through new eyes.

"Before Skot, I didn't know and I didn't care," Wilson says. "Once you have a relationship, you see the history of your friend and you plug into that."

Welch has long worked in diversity training and corporate consulting. As founder of Global Bridgebuilders, he helps companies diversify their workforce, suppliers and marketing.

Wilson has been an Emmy-winning producer and writer in print and broadcast, with marketing experience at WOOD-AM. It was natural for the two to team up three years ago on a radio show about race.

It airs on Public Reality Radio, a listener-supported station that touts "rational patriotism" through educational programs. Its shows range from news analyst Rachel Maddow to local religious skeptics, liberal ministers Fred Wooden and Bill Freeman and former City Commissioner Rick Tormala.

Enter Welch and Wilson, armed with on-air charm and the conviction that fighting racism was not optional for Jesus.

"He didn't ask us to come together," Welch says. "We're commanded to fellowship and unite."
His proof text is Revelation 7:9, which describes people from every nation and tongue gathered before God's throne.

"They weren't in their separate neighborhoods or school districts," Welch points out.

Churches should be leading the way on this, but they are more segregated than society, both men agree.

"Racism in the church is huge, because it hides itself behind good deeds (and) morality," Welch says.

"If there's anybody that can do something about racism, it's the body of Christ," Wilson argues. "We have the tools to work with, we're just not using them."

They're using their show to push West Michigan toward the biblical vision of racial unity and against the old maxim that Sunday morning is the most segregated hour of the week.

"We thought we could have the most integrated hour of the week simply because we were friends," Wilson says.

"Our goal is that people begin to have relationships with people that are different and have conversations around the tough issues," Welch adds.

They converse with guests such as the Rev. Rik Stevenson, who discussed the Gates arrest, and Bing Goei, a diversity activist and business owner who talked about the connection between Michigan's racial problems and its ailing economy.

I was a guest recently to talk about the Belhar Confession, a statement of justice and unity adopted by the Reformed Church in America and under consideration by the Christian Reformed Church.

I did my best to keep up with their friendly banter and learned a whole lot, like how one famous gospel musician believes the augmented 7th chord is of the devil. If that's true, some Pentecostal churches are in big trouble, I said.

It was good to talk about the sensitive issue of race with two such gracious, well-informed guys. I assume it's the kind of talk President Barack Obama wanted to have over a beer with Gates and Sgt. James Crowley on Thursday.